strip-mining
Open-pit coal removal
Strip-mining is a method of extracting minerals or coal by removing the overlying soil and rock rather than tunneling underground.
The technique is efficient but devastating to landscapes, leaving behind bare, cratered terrain.
Figuratively, to strip-mine something is to exploit it thoroughly while disregarding long-term damage: Private equity strip-mined the company for assets.
Load beyond capacity
- draglineHeavy digging machine
- open-pitExcavated from exposed ground
- excavationAct of unearthing
- highwallVertical excavation face
bench · shovel · earthmover · bulldozer · quarrying · blasting · dredging · terracing
Recovery of something lost
- tailingsPost-extraction mineral waste
- topsoilNutrient-rich surface earth
- erosionGradual wearing away
- deforestationLarge-scale woodland elimination
habitat destruction · depletion · sediment · runoff · groundwater · rehabilitation · revegetation · scarring
overburden
Load beyond capacity
- draglineHeavy digging machine
- open-pitExcavated from exposed ground
- excavationAct of unearthing
highwall · bench · shovel · earthmover · bulldozer · quarrying · blasting · dredging · terracing · pit
reclamation
Recovery of something lost
deforestation · habitat destruction · depletion · sediment · runoff · groundwater · rehabilitation · revegetation · scarring · watershed
strip-miningland restoration
Reviving damaged terrain
reforestation · rewilding · ecological restoration · conservation · land stewardship
strip-miningsustainable harvesting
Resource collection preserving future availability
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